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Video Description
A free society depends on exchanging new ideas, regardless of their potential capability of offending someone. Without the open exchange of ideas, our current understanding of the world would be unrecognizable and entirely false.
Full Video Transcript
Free speech is far from free. Commonly known as civil discourse or the open exchange of ideas, freedom of speech comes at the cost of valuing the right to express one’s opinions without the fear of censorship or restraint.
With the evolution of the digital age, freedom of speech becomes more controversial as new means of communication and restrictions arise.
Freedom of speech is a cherished idea around much of the world,
considered to be a basic human right that millions have fought and died for.
But now we may be in danger of losing it. And this right
isn’t being taken away by an oppressive external enemy,
but by an electronic generation who value political correctness and subjectivity
over freedom of speech. In institutions across the globe,
words are being banned. Here’s a list of banned words on
actual college campuses. Universities are now coming out with speech guides to create
an atmosphere where no one can be offended and all words and phrases are politically
correct. Ironically, the term politically correct is on there too. Some words and phrases
have been banned completely, while many more words have been labeled problematic.
Freedom of expression, even more so than speech, is a fundamental human right that reinforces
all other human rights. However, free speech does not mean giving bigots a free pass.
It includes the right and moral imperative to challenge, oppose, and protest bigoted views.
And as history has shown, bad ideas are most often defeated by good ideas,
backed up by ethics and reason, rather than by bans and censorship.
A free society depends on exchanging new ideas, regardless of their potential capability of
offending someone. Many of the most important profound ideas in human history such as those
of Galileo Galilei and Charles Darwin caused great religious offense in their time. The scientific
revolution and the enlightenment alone were turbulent periods of upending our traditional
perspectives of religion including our place in the universe. Astronomer Nicholas Copernicus
faced fierce resistance from the Catholic authority when he discovered the earth revolves
around the sun. Without that open exchange of ideas, our current understanding of the world
would be unrecognizable and entirely false. Everything we know about the world, from the age
of our species to the laws that govern energy, has come into being first by free speech, nurtured by
the innovation of ideas, and curated into our collective knowledge if deemed worthwhile after
withstanding the test of time. But free speech or hate speech should never come at the expense of
human life. While we are constantly haunted by the memory of violence and its potential,
we must not be fearful slaves to safe spaces. Great ideas can never thrive in a vacuum.
Freedom of speech is what both makes up and defines our social contract,
enabling people of radically different opinions to live together without violence.
Usually. Words matter. Some words hurt. But we know this about free speech. Discourse is all
we ever truly have control of. So let’s never be afraid to talk about, well, anything. Thanks for
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Source: After Skool